One matter of extreme importance is the provenance of works of fine art. Although attempts have been made in the past to register and authenticate fine art and antiques, these attempts fail in that such systems are severely limited in scope, are inaccessible to the average consumer, and are subject to mistake, error and fraud. There exists no technologically advanced worldwide, fully automated, real time database for the use of the contemporary and secondary global fine art markets.
The provenance of fine art and antiquities is particularly important from a standpoint of valuation of works of art, especially as it relates to the contemporary artists. Up until the time of this invention, the secondary fine art market has been plagued with problems of provenance, especially as it relates to artists and/or makers of works who are deceased and are, of course, unable to verify for a prospective buyer or collector, that the work was made or done by their hand. Absent an unimpeachable database of provenance, the valuation of art is often a highly speculative venture.
A global central registry for fine art and antiquities does not exist today. The global Internet art community is at best only random. Thousands upon thousands of artists pepper the worldwide web offering their works for sale to the world on an endless number of web sites, large and small. The sheer number of works available for sale or acquisition at any given time is legion. There is no common place to market works of art, where artists, buyers and collectors can convene and trade in confidence.
The global art industry's control over the supply, production, sale and acquisition of art objects has long been plagued with a rapidly growing illicit trade, including fraud, forgeries, theft and counterfeiting. Law Enforcement agencies worldwide cannot adequately handle the vast number of reported cases and are without resources to investigate each one, especially as it relates to the antiquities industry. Therefore, the vast majority of these crimes are not investigated and ultimately the criminals go unpunished.
In many cases, it is often impossible for forgeries to be identified. The best art experts in the world have been fooled, not to mention the less skilled at detecting fakes and forgeries—millions of consumers. Contemporary artists have been cheated out of millions in profits due to the proliferation of fakes and forgeries.
Another important influence over the art industry is insurance. Historically, insurers relied on the insured's recollection of the contents of a home or business at the time of a loss, be it by theft or destruction.
A global infrastructure for identifying fine art and antiquities does not exist. However, with the Internet and availability of e-commerce, it would be highly desirable to utilize such capabilities to provide for the standardization of a worldwide catalogue of art.